Manufacture of gas.



UNITED STATES PATENT @FFrciE.

ETTORE DE FAZI, OF ROME, ITALY.

MANUFACTURE OF GAS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 646,019, dated March 27, 1900.

Application filed May-10,1898. Serial No. 680,308. on specimens.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Beit known that I, ETTORE DE FAZI, a subject of the King of Italy, residing at Rome, in the Kingdom of Italy, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Manufacture of Gas, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The subject of the present invention concerns the production of gas suitable for heatin g,machinery, and illumination from calcium carbid,calcium monoxid,and bitumen. When bitumen is combined with unslaked lime and the latter is treated with water, the bitumen will be commuted to gas when the slaking of the lime begins if care is taken that the temperature is sufficiently high. This necessary elevation of' temperature is obtained most advantageously by adding calcium carbid, which, as well known,yields a brightly-illuminating gas when treated with water. As the gas resulting from lime and bitumen has but a very small illuminating power, the addition of carbid is recommended for this special reason also. Aside from thismethod of rendering the gas illuminating by means of the acetylene gas generated the addition of carbid has the primary purpose of heightening the temperature to the degree necessary for the generation of gas from lime and bitumen. The explanation for the development of a sufficiently-high temperature will be found in the fact that calcium carbid and calcium monoxid produce in their combination withwater such an elevation of temperature that under certain condition even heat it to a phase of incandescence. The carbid therefore adds to the gas-generating mass new calories which procure gas generation in combination with the calories liberated in the slaking of the lime, so that a real distillation of the bitumen takes place in the presence of'alkali. While fifty grams of calcium carbid produce from ten to thirteen liters of acetylene gas, the present inventioni. e., the employment of lime and bitumen--generates from the same mass of carbid about fifty to sixty liters of a brightly-illuminating gas.

The following per-cent. composition of the mixture has been found to yield the most favorable result: calcium monoxid, eighty parts; bitumen, ten parts; calcium car-bid, five parts.

The above proportion may be altered in accordance with the requirements of practice,

according to special proportions, without inter'fering with the invention proper.

The gas generated from the mixture of cal= cium monoxid and bitumen can be carbureted still more-=21 e., the illuminating power of the same can be enhanced by any of the usual carbureting processes by passing the gas through liquid carb'ureters, petroleum ether, benzene, and other hydrocarbons.

For the production of the above-described gas any kind of ordinary gas-generator, preferably that used for the generation of acety= lene gas, may be employed. An analysis has given the following results per liter of gas: acetylene, (O H two hundred andseventy cubic centimeters; non-sat urated hydrocarbons, (O H three hundred and ninety-two cubic centimeters; carbonic acid, (00 sixteen cubic centimeters; carbonio oxid, (G0,) 2.5 cubic centimeters; oxygen, (0,) five cubic centimeters; saturated hydrocarbons, (O ll 314.5 cubic centimeters.

I claim-- The herein-described .process consisting in mixing calcium monoxid, bitumen and calcium oarbid and treating the mixture with water.

In testimony whereof. I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ETTORE DE FAZI.

Witnesses:

HECTOR DE OAs'rRo, G. B. ZANARDO. 

